Best Mistake
by RoxasSerenity
Summary: Something different from me. SPOILERS for Iron Man 2 Novel, or what I know of it and my story 'Let It Go'. Pepper confronts Tony. FINISHED! TBC in Chap 8 of CSI fic 'Let It Go'.
1. Chapter 1

_GSRgirlforever is unforetunately having connection problems, but I decided "to hell with it" and posted so expect it to have errors._

_Technically, this is my second Iron Man story, but I bought a Mac from a friend then had trouble so I bought a new one which isnt a Mac and he hasn't been able to send it over yet. _

_I have a new direction for Let it go, but am uncertain if people will be cool with it. I have written Chapter 7 but Word is being annoying and wont let me edit anything. All I ask is for you to bare with me._

_Set at some point during Iron Man 2 so yes, there will be spoilers, based on what I know about the book whih should be delivered sometime next week._

_DISCLAIMER: If I dont own CSI, how does one expect me to own Iron Man? Co-incidently, I have Black Sabbath as my ringtone_

_***********_

Something was wrong.

As his personal assistant of ten- going on eleven - years, Pepper was mentally kicking herself for not noticing sooner. The changes weren't exactly subtle, but she'd been so busy worrying about his excursions and the clostraphobia of the press, it wasn't until his birthday, six months after the nightmare that was the 'Iron Man' conference, that she really noticed how far he was falling.

He hadn't had a drink since returning from Afghanistan then this happened suddenly. Iron Man was no longer a symbol of peace and Tony didnt seem to care. Natalia had her back almost against his chest, the Iron Man gauntlet on her hand, blowing up a rather pricey vase. Rhodey told her to leave, that he'd handle it. When she got the call from JARVIS about the fight between the pair and Rhodey taking off with the Mark II suit, Pepper put her head in her hands and sighed.

"How the hell did things get this bad?"

Fury says his problem is putting everyone in more danger than if Iron Man didn't exist and for the first time since beginning her employment at Stark Industries, Pepper was at a loss. Fury knew what was wrong, but she feared the answer. If she were to find out, she'd rather not hear it from S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Whats going on Tony?"

"Don't know what you're talking about Pep, I'm fine."

"Bullshit." Tony turned to her in shock.

"Excuse me?"

"For eight months you haven't touched a drop of alcohol, then this happens? What changed?"

There was a haunted look in his eye that she hadn't seen for a while. His head dropped for a moment before he gathered himself He walked toward her, took her hand and led her toward the couch, all without saying a word. Pepper expected him to let go, when he didn't, she knew something was VERY wrong.

"I'm dying Pepper."

His voice was quiet and she almost yelled at him for such a bad joke, but the look on his face told she he wasn't lying.

"The piece in my chest is rejecting my body. I created the damn thing to save me, I never thought for a minute that it could actually kill me."

"Jesus Tony, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I got scared. For a while I thought I was invincible. I lost that in Afghanistan and thought I got it back with Iron Man. Guess I got it wrong."

Pepper was at a loss for what to say. In a bold, and rather shocking, move, she shifted her hand slightly, slipping her slim fingers into the gaps between his larger ones. They sat in silence when Tony gently rested his head on her shoulder. He sniffled slightly, a lone tear dropping on to the material of Pepper's shirt. He quickly wiped his cheek with his free hand.

"Being a superhero sucks sometimes."

"Even heroes have the right to cry Tony."

"I thought heroes had the right to dream?"

"Heroes have the right to do what they damn well please."

"Like its ever stopped me before." Pepper let out the tiniest of laughs. "I don't get it Potts, how'd I get lucky enough to have you in my life?"

"If memory serves me, you found me when I found an error in _your_ math, which is supposed to never be wrong."

"Best mistake I ever made."

Pepper allowed a tiny smirk to grace her lips. Their heads were so close that their noses actually brushed as he rose up to face her. They were so close that he could see the tiny edge of grey in her flawless blue eyes, the uneven distribution of air produced from her mouth, grazing his lips.

Both parties unconciously began moving toward the other, the top of his lip gently grazing the bottom of hers....

"Sir, General Fury is on the line."

Neither move for a moment, taking in that JARVIS, of all 'people' had just interrupted their first kiss, before reluctantly pulling apart.

"You better get that."

"Yeah."

"Will that be all Mr Stark?"

"That will be all Miss Potts."


	2. Chapter 2

_This could quite possibly be the quickest update I've ever done. I was overwhelmed with the positive feedback I got that I felt I owned it to you beautiful people who took their time to let me know what you felt. I love you all, old readers and new._

_This is what I was talking about yesterday when I said I was bridging the gap between this story and my CSI story 'Let It Go'. If mroe people hate than like I'll delete it and rewrite it, but everything I do in this IS for a legit reason in "Let It Go" but that can easily change should you hate me after reading this. Im also posting my IM stories on livejournal, Just look for tardis_lover. Its the same as here though._

_SPOILERS: Just my story as per mentioned. I dont think there's any for IM 2. Probably lots of spelling errors. All I ask is that you bare in mind that its 1.30am and insomnia is frying my brain_

_How it ends is up to y'all._

_Enjoy_

_**************_

Pepper allowed her head to fall against the back of the sofa and mentally cursed out the ceiling. Was the world _completely _against them sharing a simple kiss? (Her own conciousness had prevented the almost kiss on the roof so it didnt count). She shifted her eyes to the right as Tony absently ran a hand through his dark hair.

Tony, for his part, was thinking of how many different ways to reprogram JARVIS, how much he hated the bald man he was on the line with and how to subtly not think about their missed moment and how incredibly _sexy _ Ms. Virginia Potts looked at the present moment without getting too excited. They were _so_ close (why did them not kissing have to be so goddam awakward afterward?)

"Stark! Are you even listening to me?"

"You caught me at a bad moment, so...no. Like you obviously weren't paying attention the seven times I said no to joining the Avengers."

"If it weren't important, I wouldn't bother wasting my time."

_Damn it. where'd she go? _"You may well have distroyed the turning point in my life, so if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go get it back."

Without bothering to wait for an answer, he unceremoniously hung up.

"JARVIS, where did Pepper go?"

"_Ms Potts is currently in the middle of a heated discussion on the phone with smoeone called 'Gil' sir."_

"Who?"

"_I am uncertain sir."_

"That was a retorical question JARVIS."

He approached Pepper's office with causion and slight panic. _So much for life changing moment._

"...Why shouldn't I be angry? _You _should called three days ago when you found out...Sara obviously got hold of you, it's not like I was out of reach...You knew damn well where I was...(sigh)...Is everyone alright?...I'll try but I'm not guanateeing anything...Gilbert!...I'm going to crack you when I get to Vegas...Should I book at a hotel before or when I get there?...I've seen your apartment Gil, there's no where for me to sleep...I'm not screwing up my back on that thing, I don't care how comfy Sully _says_ it is...Last time I listened to him Michael Pencroft tried to kiss me...It was not!...I was six, I didn't need that kind of trauma...Yes, and I recall breaking his nose in front of my entire senior class...I'd better go. I'll call you when I find out...I love you too...Bye."

_I love you too? Who the hell was she talking to?_

Pepper yanked open the door that Tony was leaning against unknowingly, causing him to almost flatten her in the process.

"Were you listening to my conversation?"

"No...well yeah...you just disappeared..." Tony trailed off, following her eyes to the phone she was turning over in her hands that was definately _not _her blackberry.

"I need some personal time. Three days ago, my mother was attacked in Vegas. The following day, someone decided to blow up Gil's car. I'm _just _finding out about it."

"Who's Gil and Sully?"

"My older brothers. I really need to go to Vegas."

Tony remained silent for a moment, before resting a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Clear the schedule for the next two weeks?"

"Why?" To say Pepper was suspicious was an understatement.

"You've been there for me every year..." No explaination needed on either part. "...I think I should be there for you during an obvious family crisis." Pepper looked sceptical. "If you feel uneasy, we can invite Rhodey."

"He's in the middle of recruitment training in Iran."

"So, we'll take Happy." Nope, she still isn't convinced. "I'm trying here Pep."

The kicked-puppy was her undoing.

"Fine, but you stay very far away from Sara or Gil will have your hyde."

"Dully noted. Will that be all Ms Potts?"

"That will be all Mr Stark." He clapped his hands together excitedly.

"Excellent. Then I suggest you get your pretty ass home and pack. I'll inform Happy."

As Tony wondered off, Pepper to contemplate just what the hell she had gotten herself into.


	3. Chapter 3

_This is the final chapter of THIS story. It will continue in my CSI story "Let It Go'. If you don't like it and you didn't say anything, its tuff shit. And before you ask, no, I did not plan on a crossover until AFTER I started writing this. _

_MASSIVE spoilers for Iron Man 2 once again. All spelling mistakes are mine, which is nothing to be proud of frankly. _

_And I'll put your minds slightly ease. Tony DOESN'T DIE! But if I've planned this right, someone's life will be on the line._

_How's THAT for engaging!_

**************

Now something was _really _wrong.

His chest felt tight around where the black/purple lines cascaded from his chest and he couldn't breathe. He reached down pulling the light from his chest, waiting for the pain to subside. Long moments seemed to pass before he was in control enough tp put the damn thing back in.

"JARVIS! What the hell is this thing doing to me?"

"_The palladium seems to be circulating at a higher rate due to accelerated heart rate."_

"Yeah, Pepper has that effect." Tony added off-handedly.

"_May I suggest avoiding further situations with Ms Potts until you have solved the problem with your chest piece?"_

"Do you _want_ to be reprogrammed?"

The AI's silence brought a smug grin to his face, even if the damn thing was right.

"How much time does the new toy need?"

"_The non-ferrous centrifuge still requires some work, though it is advised that you complete it as soon as possible to minimize the damage your current RT is inflicting on your body."_

_"_Guess that means no trip to Vegas then? That was retorical JARVIS."

************

Her brother had called back, insisting that if she brought even one pair of shoes with any form of heel, he would steal someone's lighter and burn them.

"If I swear flats, I'll get used to them and my heels will start giving me blisters again." She was whining and she knew it. Only her older brothers could get that kind of a response from her.

"_Suck it up Ginny. Not even Catherine's allowed and she's my best friend, next to Sara of course. And what about them high tops I sent you last year?"_

"You are such a bully."

"_And you're such a girl. I'll wear mine if you wear yours."_

"You of all people own a pair of Converse high tops?"

"_They're blue."_

"Sara bully you into buying them?"

"_They're actually my third pair. I wore my second for our first date."_

"Aren't you romantic?"

"_I try. How's getting time off going?"_

_"_He's coming with me."

"..._Iron Man wants to spend time with your family?"_

"I stopped trying to figure out how his mind works years ago. Its easier to deal with him." _BEEP. _"Speak of the devil. I'll call you back in a minute. Love you."

"_Love you too."_

Pepper hung up, propping her phone between her ear and shoulder as she pulled a pair of jeans under her skirt.

"I'm going to guess. Something came up."

"_I figured out how to stop the RT from leaching palladium but the longer I leave it, the more damage it's gonna do. You go, leave an address with JARVIS, and I'll meet you down, sometime tomorrow."_

_"_You don't have to come Tony."

"_I want to."_ She could practically feel her heart melting. _Damn it._

"I have to call Gil back. My flight leaves in two hours. Will that be all Mr Stark?"

"_That will be all Ms Potts." _


End file.
